Patients back Christie battle

PATIENTS and visitors to The Christie hospital are rushing to sign our petition to help get back the £6.5m of charity cash it lost in the Icelandic banking collapse. More than 3,000 people have signed petitions in the Manchester cancer hospital's reception and canteen.

PATIENTS and visitors to The Christie hospital are rushing to sign our petition to help get back the £6.5m of charity cash it lost in the Icelandic banking collapse.

More than 3,000 people have signed petitions in the Manchester cancer hospital's reception and canteen.

And another 2,000 supporters have returned our coupons or signed our online petition demanding the cash - most of which was raised by patients and their families - is reimbursed.

On Thursday fundraisers ambushed Gordon Brown when he visited the city. After speaking to them for 15 minutes he promised to look into the problem 'very carefully' and invited them to visit him in Downing Street to discuss it further.

Jenny Haskey, from The Christie's charity, said: "We've been overwhelmed by the number of people signing the petition at the hospital. Patients clearly feel so passionately about The Christie and what has happened to our money that they want to support us in whatever way they can."

The cash was lost when the Icelandic bank Kaupthing Singer and Friedlander - KSF - collapsed. It held the highest possible safety rating and offered the best interest rates when The Christie was advised to invest. Most of the cash came from fundraisers.

Hospitals, councils and other authorities had more than £900m invested in KSF and other failed Icelandic banks.

Bosses at The Christie tried to get their money back through the Financial Services Compensation Scheme - which protects individuals and small businesses that have invested in foreign banks - but were refused. They have now pledged to take legal action to overturn the decision.

The M.E.N. is calling on politicians, fundraisers and celebrities to support our Cash Back for Christie campaign . So far 12 MPs have signed an early day motion backing the Cash Back for Christie campaign.

Mr Brown said: "I will be looking at this very carefully - I would like the Icelandic authorities to be able to pay back this money. We are in negotiations about that. But where people were under the supervision of other countries' authorities it is very difficult."

Labour and Liberal Democrat groups pledged to raise the issue in the Commons and Phil Woolas, the immigration minister and MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, has called for common sense to prevail.

The lost cash was for two new radiotherapy centres in Salford and Oldham.